As the 25/26 Premier League season approaches, we bring you a full breakdown of Ait-Nouri’s transfer to Man City and how he impacts the upcoming FPL season! We break down Ait-Nouri’s position and role, his indivdual impact, the impact to his team and what all of that means for his FPL value. We also take a shot at estimating his price range and stats!
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Transfer Overview:
Transfer:
From Wolves to Man City.
Tranfer Fee:
£36.3 million.
Contract Length:
5 year contract. Runs until 2030.
Wage:
Rumoured to be more than double his £33k a week salary at Wolves. Likely between £80-£100k a week.
Individual Analysis:
Position:
Left back. Did occasionally play further forward for Wolves due to his attacking ability, however I don’t see this as likely with the true attacking options City possess.
Ait-Nouri has been a touchline fullback, hugging the left touchline and overlapping, providing width as you can see from his heatmap.
(Source: Sofascore.com)
Role & Stats:
Ait-Nouri is one of the best attacking fullbacks in the Premier League. He has high-level dribbling, passing and crossing ability as well as being a solid goal threat for a fullback and shows Pep is moving back to having traditional wide fullbacks rather than CB’s playing as inverted fullbacks.
The Algerian left back scored 4 goals from 2.7xG which displays his ability to finish well. He strikes it cleanly and with good technique when he does get into central spaces which he will sometimes for Man City, allowing Doku the width of the left hand side to go 1 on 1 with his fullback.
Going from a Wolves team that finished 16th in xG and 17th in Big Chances Created to playing for a Man City team that finished 2nd in xG and 3rd in those categories respectively, his xG should increase playing in a team that creates far more chances and higher xG chances. Therefore it’s safe to assume, Ait-Nouri’s goal tally should at least stay the same if not increase slightly.
Ait-Nouri’s best trait is his passing and crossing ability. He is able to find all types of deft passes from different angles in the final third, leading to key passes and assists. He has already shown this with his link up with Reijnders for Man City’s first goal against Al Hilal in their Club World Cup game. He is also a consistent and high quality crosser of the ball, able to find different crosses from different angles to find his forwards, whether whipping one in from deep or cut backs from the by line etc.
He had an impressive 7 assists last season, which trailed only Antonee Robinson for Defenders. Those 7 assists came from 4.0xA which was a good total and only 7 other Defenders finished with a higher total. Once again, moving from Wolves to Man City will almost certainly mean both his xA and assist numbers increase, potentially significantly.
(Source: Fotmob.com)
Expected Minutes:
I expect Ait-Nouri to be a consistent starter, with the potential exception of when City are facing a team with an elite right winger who will take advantage of his defensive frailties such as Salah or Saka. I would expect him to start more than 30+ league games, health permitting.
FPL Position:
Premium Defender
FPL Analysis:
Ait-Nouri is going to be a Premium Defender no question about it.
His attacking profile, playing for Man City, with the performances he already put in at the CWC, makes me think he is going to be one of the highest owned Defenders in FPL in GW1.
He will be in a tier with his Kerkez, Hall, Gabriel, Lewis-Skelly, Frimpong, Cucurella and the likes as those premium defensive assets on the best teams in the country, who provide an elite ceiling due to their attacking output as well as playing for the best defensive teams in the league.
Ait-Nouri is an excellent corner and free kick taker and this is a role he could legitimately cement as his when City want a left footed player taking the set piece. This could prove big for his FPL value.
Team Impact:
Ait-Nouri is not the best fullback when it comes to 1 on 1 defending or aerially, so he could make City a worse defence compared to once they sured things up towards the end of last season.
His brilliant passing and creative abilities in the final third will make City a better team at breaking down low blocks which is something they struggled with last season. It should also make them a better counter attacking side, despite the fact that is not really how City play.
He and Doku already have built some good chemistry and I think Ait-Nouri will help Doku improve his G/A numbers.
Ait-Nouri’s arrival means Gvardiol likely sticks at CB, which lowers his FPL ceiling as he is much less likely to provide assists from CB.
FPL Price Range Prediction:
£5.5-£6.0m
My Prediction:
Ait-Nouri will be in my FPL team in GW1. His attacking ceiling in this City team, along with how well he has played at the Club World Cup, makes him a profile that is difficult for me to ignore. I truly think he could finish as a top 5 scoring Defender this season.
If his defensive frailties mean he begins to get rotated out for Gvardiol/Ake more often than we assume will happen, that obviously changes things later in the season.
An absolute FPL Fanatic, with a strong background in sports Journalism and statistics, Ahsan is one of the key writers here at ingenuity. Ahsan's content stretches from How-to guides right up to analytical deep dives on players, making his content appealing for both the serious fantasy player and newbie alike.
09 Jul, 2025
